If you see your doctor for back pain, he or she will examine your back and assess your ability to sit, stand, walk and lift your legs. Your doctor might also ask you to rate your pain on a scale of zero to 10 and talk to you about how well you're functioning with your pain.

These assessments help determine where the pain comes from, how much you can move before pain forces you to stop and whether you have muscle spasms. They will also help rule out more-serious causes of back pain.

If there is reason to suspect a specific condition may be causing your back pain, your doctor may order one or more tests:

X-ray. These images show the alignment of your bones and whether you have arthritis or broken bones. These images alone won't show problems with your spinal cord, muscles, nerves or disks.

MRI or CT scans. These scans can generate images that may reveal herniated disks or problems with bones, muscles, tissue, tendons, nerves, ligaments and blood vessels.

Blood tests. These can help determine whether you have an infection or other condition that might be causing your pain.

Bone scan. In rare cases, your doctor may use a bone scan to look for bone tumors or compression fractures caused by osteoporosis.

Nerve studies (electromyography, or EMG). This test measures the electrical impulses produced by the nerves and the responses of your muscles. This test can confirm nerve compression caused by herniated disks or narrowing of your spinal canal (spinal stenosis).

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